Month: May 2018

A poor choice
Ugh. So I made the mistake of watching the final debate for Ontario Premiere. First off, whose stupid idea was it to have these blabbermouths have an open debate? So they could all talk over each other, fearmonger, and you can hear nothing? Stupid. Ford was unimpressive. A few catch lines and zingers he repeated ad nauseam but had nearly no substance and no platform. WTF are clowns clapping about? You so easily impressed by his rhetoric? Wait until he takes all your services away. You won’t be laughing then. I was primarily interested in seeing Horvath. And she also didn’t impress. Sure, beside a buffoon like Ford she seems mildly credible but only marginally. Shockingly, or surprisingly, Wynne seemed the most polished. She was patient and had smart answers to questions. Plans, not bluster. But she is also dragging the anchor of her past performance and failures. So wow. Good luck Ontario. A big bunch of ‘don’t want’ to vote for. Sigh. Once again, might have to vote for the least worst candidate.

Last weekend we drove up to Hardwood Hills to test drive a bike and hit some trails. Well, it started off quite poorly. We signed up for a guided tour on some beginner trails. We were looking forward to getting a bit of instruction and some easy routes, as we have never ridden in Hardwood before. We met up with the group, started the ride, first hill… change gears… CHANGE GEARS?!….UGH… it wouldn’t change, at all. The bike was locked in a high gear, making it useless for climbing. Soooooo, I took it back to the very helpful bike mechanic I rented from. He checked it over. The former renter did a number on it. I noticed when I first got the bike that a bunch of wood chips were stuck in the chain and gears, we guess the former ride hit a tree, damaged the bike and didn’t report it. Thanks buddy! So, the mechanic setup me with a new Cannondale Cujo and off we went. I didn’t have any other bike issues. I’ve only really ridden a 20 year old, shockless, touring Trek for most my life, so a bike with shocks and massive tires was eye-opening. It felt like driving a tank surrounded by balloons. It would go over anything. Trail riding was fun. (Incidentally, accurately, the trail was named “Fun”) We did two loops then met up with my BiL who was actually racing that day. We asked him how he thought he did, he said, oh 10 top I think. Later as the winners were announced and heading to the podium, he was caught unprepared for his 2nd place finish! (Congrats JP!) We did another short “cool down” lap with JP then left Hardwood. It was a great afternoon there. We will certainly be back.
Bdot has enjoyed the Kona she got at Bike Zone and wants to continue riding. If I was to have any hope in keeping up with her, I was going to need a new bike. The consensus from Bike Zone staff and our bike consultant JP was that the Kona Kuana was the best bike available for our price point. So yes… we have now have matching bikes. We will differentiate them with grips and water carriers. It didn’t make sense to get an inferior bike just so they were different looking. As I mentioned before, coming from the old Trek, the Kona feels like a massive upgrade, because it is. I look forward to more mountain biking!
All that biking made us really hungry! We did sushi at Akira. It was good – we all ate our fill and then some. It was great to see JP and my sister.

Grow damn it!
A while ago we overseeding the lawn. That was a big job. The bigger job is trying to keep the seed moist so it will germinate. SO MUCH WATERING. Dragging the hose to the front yard, to the backyard, to the side yard, water on, water off, watch the plants! … it is a horribly painful task. We are seeing some progress, however. The front yard (which has more shade) has a fair bit of new grass growing. The rest of the yard is hit and miss in spite of our best efforts.

Years ago I played WOW fairly regularly. But over time I was able to justify the monthly cost less and less and eventually canceled the account. Periodically, I miss wandering in an MMORPG universe. Recently I came across a list of the top MMORPGs. So, I decided to try a few out. One stuck: Lord of the Rings Online. It was familiar. I think I tried it years ago and didn’t like it. Looking at the now, it is easy to say the opening area is a poor introduction to the game. The rest of the realm is much nicer looking. The UI is still a bit clunky but it is really fun to play and it’s FREE! (Although you are brought to the BUY upgrades screen an awful lot…which will cost you real cashola)

Simplii Hacked
So my bank got hacked. Thousands (90k! according to an MP in Question Period) of accounts are compromised. I’m not sure if I’m one or not. I’ve changed my password just in case. The hackers called the bank (who didn’t know they were hacked) that they were. And I’m trusting these people with my money…?!

It is Golden Knights vs. Capitals for the Cup. I’m pulling for Ovi but the Knights are up a game.

Great to see Rosanne said something racist and ABC canceled her show. A candlelight of hope in a nation wandering in divisive darkness.

ABC canceled Roseanne’s show over a racist tweet. Her feed has been full of racism and conspiracy theories for a decade. https://t.co/qL3iYUI7s9

We spent most of Friday afternoon top dressing the lawn with dirt and seed. What an exhausting day. I think I hit close to 23k steps. I sure hope it helps the lawn.
It was a rainy weekend so checked out a few movies. First was Avengers: Infinity War. We arrived late so ended up in the necked breaking front row (which sucked)… It was an incredibly entertaining, well produced special effects extravaganza. It had some good laughs too. However, it is hard to really discuss the movie without spoilers. But wow, what an ending. Consequences all over the place for future films…

A day will come when you think you are safe and happy, and your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth. And you will know the debt is paid. Theon Greyjoy: You should be proud in your brother’s achievements. -Tyrion Lannister

I also came across a video with an intriguing list of dark movies on Netflix. I’ve already seen a few of them but watched The Wailing over two nights (it is around 3hrs). What a film! It is Korean subtitled in English and may be the best thriller/horror movie I have seen. Ignore the first 30-45m which are silly, the last two hours are completely gripping and powerful. (Almost unrelated to the beginning tone of the film) Brilliant acting, a very moving plot and often beautifully shot. (One review also recommended Chaser and The Yellow Sea – which I have not seen. All three films directed by Hong-jin Na.
Canada played their semifinal game versus the Swiss today. Despite outshooting and outplaying the Swiss for most of the game… the Canadians couldn’t get enough pucks past the Swiss goalie and lost. They will play the is tomorrow for bronze. It was pretty disheartening. I mean Canada outshot them 18-1 in the 3rd. In the NHL – both teams I’m cheering for are losing… Jets and Caps are both facing elimination. Sigh. I was hoping Ovi would get a shot at the Cup, it isn’t looking promising. (Update: Jets are out, Caps force game 7!)
Barb was recommended a Shawarma place (La Shawarma) in Bolton. We tried it tonight and it was really good! So another good option for eats in the area!

Lots of bikes
It was a busy long weekend. Sunday we drove up to Barrie. Bdot is interested in pursuing a new interest, mountain biking! So we contacted my BiL since he is very knowledgeable in the area. He had all sorts of great info and recommendations for what bikes to look at. We stopped at BikeZone in Barrie. It is a huge store with all your biking needs. My BiL recommended two bikes in her price range. She took both for a spin around the building and decided on the Kona Kahuna. I’m still riding my (???) 15-year-old bike, so to me, it rides like a Cadillac. After the bike was sorted out we took the dog for a short walk.Trilliums!
There were trilliums everywhere! Afterward, we ventured over to my BiL’s house. I haven’t been there in a while. Since my last visit, they have renoed most of the main floor completely. It is unrecognizable now. It is all open concept. It felt like walking into a new downtown condo. I think they picked colours and textures (etc.) quite well. It is very sharp looking, even if it is overrun by cats. Since we had the dog and no bike carrier, my BiL was kind enough to bring Bdot’s new bike down in his truck. We BBQed and enjoyed dinner and a few beers from Redline Brewhouse. Check Engine and Block Heater were quite good. We had a good visit with him while my Sister was off in B.C. biking herself.
Yesterday, of course, we had to test drive the bike. We found a curious assortment of single and double track trails in Palgrave Forest. It was grueling but great exercise. I don’t think I’ve biked that tough a trail before. In the evening we had a visit from bdot’s sister and family. They took the rest of our massive pile of dirt. The nephews splashed about in the hottub.

Our thoughts are with bdot’s Dad who is undergoing surgery today. I hope for smooth sailing and a quick recovery.

My mother stayed at my sister’s last weekend. On the way home (on Mother’s Day!) she stopped in for lunch and a visit. It was a perfect day. Warm and not a cloud in the sky. We were able to enjoy lunch outside in the Sun’s warmth. It was lovely afternoon with Mom.

The new Dell

My new laptop has arrived! First and foremost, again, thanks to both Bdot and Aunt Betty (posthumously). The Dell 7577 is a beast. The specs are awesome: a GTX1060 GPU, i5-7300HQ Quad Core CPU, both a SSD and old school HD – so both speed and storage. It is easily as powerful as my desktop. There are of course some sacrifices (as with all laptops) – it is heavy, the screen isn’t amazing and the battery life varies on task, but is generally average. What the system will allow is upgradability. I will upgrade the RAM at some point to 16G and can easily upgrade the drive when the need arises. Performance, so far, has been really smooth, the 2×2 WIFI is worth it for sure. It has a network jack but I haven’t felt the need to use it. In general, I love it. It is also really quiet. Even playing games, yes the fans come on and there is some fan sound but nothing distracting or intolerable. Sound quality is average, there are special options for better sound via headphones but I haven’t tried it yet. The system will be a daily driver for (hopefully) years to come.

Spring means yard work! This season we have been picking out hundreds of tree keys from maple trees, and of course the scourage of dandelion and violets. We are pondering getting an automated watering system but so far the cost (and installers we have found) have been prohibitive.

Canada is stumbling along at the World. Finland destroyed everyone in the division. Wow. Canada squeaked by Latvia and Germany to get into the knock out round. Not sure how it will shake out… I heard Sweden or Russia. Ugh. Back in North America, the final four for the Cup are the Jets, Golden Knights, Capitals and the Lightning. I’d like to see the Jets (for Canada) or Caps (for Ovi) win. Indifferent to the other two.

Bdot has been pursuing a new interest in mountain biking. I do enjoy leisurely trail riding so we’ll see where that goes!

I have a lion!
Not sure how long ago it was… but at least, months ago, I kickstarted Pillar of Eternity II – Deadfire. It was released early this week. It is pretty impressive!
Okay, I have a few hours in…(to quote Steam:)
After the disaster that Shroud of the Avatar was, I was praying I didn’t back another kickstarter mess. Well, wow… I sure didn’t!
-graphics and lighting are beautiful and atmospheric. Dungeons are eerie as torchlight glistens against the walls
-lots of interesting classes/races to choose from
-magic classes are deep with a massive assortment of spells
-voice acting is spot on and seems to be the majority of text
-it is in an RPG first, pirate themed game second
-NPCs have character and are well thought out
-combat – which I wasn’t huge on in Pillars I seems to have been refined. It feels like action turn based… which is contrary but awesome. The ability to set pause points dictates how much of a turn based feel combat will have
-combat/spell animations have been fantastic and I’ve only seen the first few levels
-quest system is clear and clever
-inventory management is decent
-seems to be a ton of content… still figuring out ship management and crafting
-overall really impressed with this Pillars 2!

Dog was happy to get some water
Weather was pretty crazy last week. There was a day with really intense winds. There were power outages and uprooted trees everywhere. Fortunately our property was spared from Mother Nature’s wrath.

We did this hike last weekend. It was quite apparent during the hike that a storm went through recently. There were several sections of trail blocked by fallen trees. It was a comfortable, cool day to hike. Toward the end of the hike, it was looking like rain was threatening so we tried to boogie it on out. It didn’t end up raining on us. Phew. It was a really hilly hike. My legs are sore but not dreadful. I think a soak in the hot tub helped.

Stanley Cup: Bruins are out. San Jose is out. Pittsburgh is out. As of now, Nashville looks like they will force a game seven. NBA: Raptors got clobbered by King James.

My wife has generously bought me a new laptop (that I’ve been coveting for months). Dude ‘yer getting a Dell! I wanted something that would age well, was easy to upgrade and had killer specs. I’ve always liked Lenovo but the only series I liked was the Y series and I think the 720 is garish and price wise, I think the 520 is overpriced. For similar money, I got a fairly loaded Dell 7577. Sure it is labeled as a “gaming laptop”, and it is, but the design is toned down considerably. And really, a “gaming laptop” is just a laptop with a high quality GPU. I’m pretty excited, as I haven’t bought new tech, let alone a new laptop, for years. Obviously more on this once it arrives. 😀

Childish
Sometimes a piece of art speaks for a moment in time. The video This is America by Childish Gambino certainly does this. It is a visual spectacle with a ton to take in. Many layers, many messages. Perhaps too many to absorb in a single viewing. Poignant and powerful. Perhaps another wake up call to a slumbering U.S.A.